Sarah Berger

The Shadowland Theatre in Ellenville, New York located in Ulster County has an exciting schedule for this summer. Currently, they are showing Art, by Yasina Reza, Translation by Chritopher Hampton. A description from their website reads "Winner of the 1998 Tony Award for Best Play, the wonderful comedy and Broadway hit, Art,lights up the Shadowland with an All-Star cast featuring Emmy and Tony Award- winning actor Judd Hirsch".

I have not seen the play yet, but I have heard from others that have that it is absolutely wonderful! I cannot wait to see it. The Shadowland is one the great features of Ellenville. There is also a great restaurant next door, Aroma Thyme Bistro, where you enjoy after show drinks, or dinner before the show.

If you would liike more information about either of the places mentioned above, here are their websites. Enjoy!

www.shadowlandtheatre.org

www.aromathymebistro.com

I am not sure if any of you have experienced this situation, but I think that it is becoming more and more prevalent throughout our area. "What situation?" you might be wondering.

In my neighborhood which is in Ellenville, New York (and many others I am sure), there are three homes that I can think of right at that are in the process of being foreclosed on. I have seen the notice of Lis Pendens in the local paper.

Then, shortly after that, the homeowners move out. In these cases, the houses were neglected already and now...even worse! They were nice homes in what I think is a nice neighborhood and now they are being left to fall apart. One of the homes had a leaky roof when it was being offered for sale. It was never sold, the roof was never fixed and I am sure that the situation is getting worse.

I am assuming (I know what happens when you assume, but try to cut me some slack) that the Banks are not local. In my experience, local Banks do not just let homes sit like this. They are usually maintained (even if it is minimally) until they can sell, even if it is at a loss to the Bank.

Can anyone tell me why a Bank would just let a home sit and be destroyed? What is going to happen to these homes? Will they just continue to deteriorate and then be sold, years later, for a rock bottom price to an investor who does not care about the neighborhood? And then, what is going to happen to the neighborhoods where these homes are located? Property values will decline, others may want to sell and so on and so on.

If anyone has insight into this, PLEASE share. I really would like to understand this better. I am rather familiar with the foreclosure process, but in my experience, this does not usually happen.

I am proud to say that the company that I work for has been featured in this week's edition of the Ellenville Journal in the "Eye on Pine Bush" section in the "Merchant Spotlight". The Ellenville Journal is a welcomed source of local information and the article lets everyone know about the company and it has been so successful helping people buy and sell real estate of all kinds. I hope you will take a minute to read the article! Here is the link:

http://www.ellenvillejournal.com/2008/03/06/news/5.html

The Village of Ellenville is located in the Town of Wawarsing in Ulster County, New York. It is at the junction of Route 52 and US 209. It is an easy to commute from Ellenville to Orange and Sullivan counties.

The first building was erected in the community around 1805, but by 1823 there were only about 4 houses in the village. The Village of Ellenville was incorporated in 1838.

A more little known fact is that Ellenville was the 4^th community featured on ABC's television show, "My Kind of Town", on September 4, 2005.

The Post Office and The Hunt Memorial Building are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

One of the most beautiful, up and coming communities in the area, Ellenville is close to hiking, biking, skiing, and great local restaurants and businesses.